Louise Rhodes
Mar 28, 2022
Four remarkable McLaren Vale sites. Four very different expressions of Grenache. One winemaker. One 100% whole-bunch philosophy.
From the cool heights of Clarendon to the sandy soils of Blewitt Sands and the old vines of Blewitt Springs, discover what happens when we let the vineyard do the talking.
Explore the Single Site Grenaches ```What if you could taste your way across McLaren Vale without leaving the dinner table?
Pour four glasses of Grenache made by the same winemaker, using the same fundamental approach.
Then taste them side by side.
Suddenly, "terroir" isn't something you need to understand. You can taste it.
That's the idea behind Aphelion's Single Site Grenaches. Each wine comes from one specific site, is fermented with 100% whole bunch and handled with a deliberately light touch in the winery.
```A vineyard isn't one uniform piece of land.
Elevation changes. Aspect changes. Soil changes. Vine age changes. Water availability changes. Even the way the vines experience the afternoon sun can change.
A Single Vineyard wine tells you which vineyard produced the fruit. Single Site takes you closer.
We select a particular block or site within a vineyard and bottle that Grenache separately.
Instead of blending those differences away, we preserve them.
Same variety. Same winemaker. Same 100% whole-bunch approach. Four very different places.
Dark, brooding and spicy.
A cool, mineral and floral expression with black cherry, dark plum, forest berries, earth and dark spice.
Fine, pithy tannin and energising acidity give the wine serious structure for the cellar.
Best for: lovers of depth, darkness and savoury spice.
Explore BriniFragrant, cool and finely structured.
From Blocks 111–113 at the highest point of the vineyard, with a southerly aspect that delays ripening.
Red cherry, cranberry, herbs and spice meet crystalline acidity and a firm, web-like tannin framework.
Best for: lovers of fragrance, freshness and fine tannin.
Explore HickinbothamOld-vine, savoury and seriously structured.
From dry-grown bush vines planted in the 1940s. Violet, boysenberry, raspberry, sage, mineral, iodine, mint and graphite.
Firm, grippy and electrifying, with the structure to reward serious cellaring.
Best for: lovers of old vines, savouriness and cellar-worthy Grenache.
Explore WaitConcentrated, full-bodied and deeply structured.
A 1947-planted vineyard on deep sandy soil, now farmed by Matt Hatwell and his family.
Dark fruit, perfume, body and prominent tannin, with remarkable drive and length.
Best for: lovers of concentration, power and structure.
Explore Plaisted'sWhole bunch is where Grenache really levels up and shines.
Here's something you don't get to experience every day: 100% whole-bunch Grenache.
Every one of the 2025 Aphelion Single Site Grenaches is fermented with the whole bunch intact — stems included.
It sounds like a technical detail. In the glass, it isn't.
Whole bunch can bring aromatic lift, savoury herbal character, another layer of texture and additional tannin to Grenache.
And that matters because Grenache already has generous, ripe fruit. The stems can give that fruit something to push against.
Herbal and savoury notes balance Grenache's naturally generous fruit.
Whole bunch can add perfume and lift, making the wine feel more energetic.
Stem-derived tannin gives the wine another layer of shape and persistence.
Fruit, spice, herbs, tannin and savouriness come together in layers.
Rob uses an oxidative whole-bunch approach rather than carbonic maceration.
The aim isn't novelty or bubblegum fruit.
It's to make Grenache more savoury, more detailed, more structured and ultimately more interesting to drink.
And because all four Single Site wines are made with 100% whole bunch, you get to taste what happens when the same winemaking choice meets four completely different vineyard sites.
Some vineyards need decades before they reveal what they're capable of.
Plaisted's was planted in 1947 by the Plaisted family and sits in the lower section of Blewitt Springs, in the Blewitt Sands sub-region.
Today it is owned and farmed by the Hatwell family, with Matt Hatwell at the helm.
Rob already knew the wines that had come from this vineyard. So when the opportunity came for Aphelion to work with the site in 2025, he was excited.
Then came vintage.
After seeing the result from the 2025 harvest, Rob slotted the wine straight into the Single Site program.
The critics have tasted them. Now it's your turn.
Steely, mineral and floral, with redcurrant, forest berries, mint, earth and dark spice. A beautifully structured, site-driven expression.
From the highest patch of Hickinbotham, with a southerly aspect. Red fruits, herbs and spice combine with crystalline acidity and a firm, elegant tannin framework.
Dry-grown bush vines from the 1940s. Violet, boysenberry, raspberry, sage, mineral, iodine, mint and graphite with serious tannin and electrifying drive.
The most concentrated and full-bodied wine in the range. Dark-fruited, perfumed and deeply structured, with prominent tannin and extraordinary drive.
This is what makes the Single Site project so interesting.
We're not changing everything between wines. We're deliberately keeping the winemaking philosophy consistent.
That way, when the wines taste different, we can look back towards the place.
The vineyard gets to have the last word.
You don't need to be able to identify every soil type to appreciate what you're tasting.
Just pour them side by side and notice what changes.
Dark · mineral · floral
Black cherry, dark plum, forest berries, earth, mint and dark spice.
Cool · fragrant · structured
Red cherry, cranberry, herbs, spice, crystalline acidity and fine tannin.
Old-vine · savoury · powerful
Violet, boysenberry, sage, mineral, iodine, mint and graphite.
Concentrated · full-bodied · deep
Blueberry, raspberry, violet, cedar, sweet spice, mint and orange.
The scores are impressive. But more interesting is how consistently the critics have responded to the individual character and structure of each site.
96 Halliday
95+ Wine Front
A dark, mineral and floral expression with serious tannin architecture.
96 Halliday
96 Wine Front
A cool-site wine where structure and freshness are central to the experience.
97 Halliday
96+ Wine Front
95 Wine Anorak
Campbell Mattinson called it a "Wine of the Year contender."
96 Wine Front
Campbell Mattinson called it "an epic release from Aphelion."
Both are unmistakably Aphelion. But they're asking the wine to do something different.
| Confluence Grenache 2025 | Single Site Grenaches 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Origin | A blend bringing together remarkable McLaren Vale sites. | One specific site within one vineyard. |
| Winemaking | 30% final whole bunch, matured in cocciopesto amphora, demi-muid and 2,800L foudre. | 100% whole bunch and large-format neutral French oak. |
| Experience | A broader, layered expression of McLaren Vale Grenache. | A deeper dive into the personality of one place. |
| Choose it if... | You want vibrant, complex Grenache with multiple sites coming together. | You want to taste the influence of vineyard, soil, elevation and vine age. |
| The fun part | Discover what happens when great places meet. | Discover what happens when you keep those places apart. |
Confluence brings places together.
Single Site lets them speak for themselves.
Explore Confluence GrenacheFor us, provenance isn't a marketing word.
It's the reason these wines exist.
We work with growers who care deeply about their vineyards, including old-vine sites that have been tended for generations.
Plaisted's was planted in 1947. The Wait vineyard dates to the 1940s. Hickinbotham's Single Site comes from the highest blocks of a remarkable Clarendon vineyard. Brini comes from a site in Blewitt Springs that has been part of Aphelion's story for years.
These aren't anonymous grapes.
They have a place, a history and people behind them.
When you buy a Single Site Grenache, you're helping create demand for wines with provenance and supporting the vineyards and growers behind them.
The 2025 Single Site wines aren't built around instant gratification.
They're built around structure.
Natural acidity. Tannin. Site expression. Whole-bunch character. Concentrated fruit.
They can be enjoyed now, but give them air. Give them a good glass. And, if you have the patience, give them time.
Plaisted's, for example, is expected to continue evolving through to 2038.
Open one tonight. Put a few away. Then see what time does.
These wines have the structure for serious food, but don't need a complicated recipe.
Think good ingredients, generous plates and people you like.
Chargrilled lamb · Duck · Roast vegetables · Rich pasta
Herb-roasted chicken · Pork · Mediterranean vegetables · Charcuterie
Slow-roasted lamb · Braised beef · Mushrooms · Aged hard cheese
Rare beef · Slow-cooked meats · Chargrilled mushrooms · Rich winter dishes
Or forget the rules.
Put something delicious in the middle of the table, open a bottle and let the evening unfold.
That's what we're really making wine for.
A little more detail for the curious — whether you're new to whole bunch or already know your Grenache inside out.
Single Site means the grapes come from one specific site or block within a vineyard, rather than being blended from multiple vineyards or multiple sites.
At Aphelion, Single Site Grenache is our way of exploring how individual McLaren Vale sites influence Grenache's fruit, structure, freshness, tannin and savoury character.
A Single Vineyard wine comes from one vineyard. Single Site goes a step further by focusing on a particular block or site within that vineyard.
One vineyard can contain different soils, elevations, aspects, vine ages and growing conditions. Isolating a site allows those differences to be explored rather than blended away.
It means the Grenache is fermented with the whole grape bunch intact, including the stems. The fruit isn't completely crushed and destemmed before fermentation.
All four Aphelion 2025 Single Site Grenaches are made using 100% whole bunch.
Whole-bunch fermentation can contribute aromatic lift, savoury and herbal complexity, additional tannin and another layer of texture.
Rob uses an oxidative whole-bunch approach because he wants to balance Grenache's naturally generous fruit with savoury character, aromatic complexity and structure.
Whole bunch is used by McLaren Vale winemakers at a range of percentages, from small additions through to 100% whole-bunch ferments.
100% whole-bunch Grenache is an uncommon style, and what makes Aphelion's Single Site program distinctive is that the entire range is made this way.
Elevation, aspect, soil, vine age, water availability and ripening conditions can all influence Grenache's fruit, acidity, tannin, freshness and structure.
Tasting the four Aphelion Single Site wines side by side makes those differences much easier to experience.
Plaisted's is sourced from the middle section of a vineyard in the Blewitt Sands area of McLaren Vale. The vineyard was planted in 1947 and the selected block sits on deep sandy soil.
The fruit has very thick skins, contributing to the wine's deep colour and full structure. It is the most concentrated and full-bodied wine in the 2025 Single Site range.
The Wait Single Site Grenache comes from dry-grown bush vines planted in the 1940s in Blewitt Springs.
Their age, dry-growing conditions and site contribute to the wine's concentration, savoury character and structural tannin.
Wait received the highest Halliday score in the 2025 range, with 97 points from Marcus Ellis for Halliday Wine Companion.
Campbell Mattinson also awarded Wait 96+ points and described it as a "Wine of the Year contender."
Campbell Mattinson awarded Plaisted's 2025 96 points in The Wine Front and described it as "an epic release from Aphelion."
Yes. Their combination of site character, natural acidity, tannin and fruit concentration gives them the structure to evolve in bottle.
They can be enjoyed now with air, but selected wines will reward further cellaring. The Plaisted's 2025 technical sheet suggests it will continue to evolve through to 2038.
Yes. Aphelion's Single Site Grenaches are unfiltered, unfined and vegan.
Choose Confluence if you want a broader, layered expression that brings multiple McLaren Vale sites together.
Choose Single Site if you want to explore the personality of a particular vineyard site.
And if you really want to understand terroir, taste the four Single Site wines side by side.
If you've discovered one site, there's a whole McLaren Vale story waiting in the next bottle.
Brini. Hickinbotham. Wait. Plaisted's.
Same variety. Same winemaker. Same 100% whole-bunch philosophy. Four very different places.
Don't just read about terroir.
Taste it.
Explore the Single Site Grenaches ```
Drink well, not to excess.
